Organic News Archive

After Stanford University published a study where they claimed organically grown food to contain no more nutrients than conventionally grown food - organic advocates went berserk, claiming the study had ulterior motivations and even have published a petition to have the study removed.

Fran Drescher isn't just HIGHlarious on her TV shows The Nanny and Happily Divorced, she's also pretty smart in person! So smart that she's become a new FitPerez health correspondent!

We're so excited to welcome Fran aboard and U should be too because she'll be sharing her passion for living a healthy lifestyle every week by answering YOUR questions!

This week, Perezcious reader Chrissy from Michigan needed some help shopping for healthy food and asked:

Hi Fran!

What should I be eating to be healthy? When I go shopping, I get so confused as to what to get! Please help!

According to Fran:

Chrissy, three words: organic, organic, organic! (Okay, maybe it’s just one, but you get the point!) We have to recognize that what we put IN our bodies is just as, if not as important as what we put on them!

I say try to cut back on animal protein and dairy products. Also, it’s probably no shock that processed and chemical soaked foods are not good for our systems. So go organic, go whole grains, and go natural! And now, go grocery shopping for your organic goodies. Your body will thank you!

A study by Cornell University graduate student Jenny Wan-chen has revealed that people have a bias in favor of foods with the organic label, which she calls the "healthy halo".

She offered 144 mall shoppers 2 samples of yogurt, chips and chocolate sandwich cookies — one organic and one "regular" — then asked them to rate the samples for qualities including taste and fat content.

The results?

Shoppers consistently found "organic" to be not only better tasting, but estimated that the organic foods had more fiber, less fat and fewer calories.

Heck, they even admitted to be willing to pay more for them!

What the shoppers weren't aware of is that both samples were organic, so their judgement was simply swayed by the "organic" label.

While this does make customers sound a little stupid, at least it shows a growing interest in purchasing the "healthier" option over any other option.

Of course, cookies aren't healthy no matter how organic they are if you eat too many of them. In the case of obesity, quantity is often more dangerous than quality.

As we previously reported, Britney Spears' baby daddy has requested an increase in his $20K a month child support stipend. While it's said that Godney isn't THRILLED at the request, she's letting her poppa negotiate a deal with KFed.

And it appears that negotiations are well under way, though Mr. Spears is NOT impressed with his former son-in-law!